1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the field of plumbing and similar fields where hangers for pipes, cables, etc. are routinely utilized. More particularly, the invention relates to a new and improved hanger assembly for use in any field where such aparati are employed. Since the invention is equally suited to any type of management/suspension of conduits, this specification will employ pipe hangers as illustrative of the invention. It will be understood, however, that other things may be secured thereby.
2. Prior Art
Pipe hanger assemblies have been made, used and sold for many years, and during that time frame, many varied constructions have been attempted and adopted by the tradesmen who use them.
Generally speaking, there are three main issues of concern in hanging pipes or the like; these are: proximity of the pipe to the supporting structure, ease of engaging the pipe with the hanger and pipe vibration noise.
Referring first to the proximity of the pipe to the supporting structure, U.S. Pat. No. 4,941,630 to Albano; U.S. Pat. No. 3,266,761 to Walton et al; U.S. Pat. No. 2,291,148 to Carson; and U.S. Pat. No. 2,681,197 to Johnson, all provide for differing distances of the subject pipe from the support structure in the same way, i.e., by allowing the installer to hammer affixing nails into the supporting structure at varying distances from the edge of the supporting structure. These all suffer from the drawback however of requiring the installer to position the pipe in the hanger first and then nail the hanger in at whatever position the nails are in. Subsequent to such attachment, adjustability is not possible without removing the entire pipe hanger assembly from the supporting structure and re-nailing it in after height adjustment has been made. This is time consuming, inefficient and irritating to the installer.
Ease of engagement of the pipe and pipe noise are closely related in the prior art and therefore are discussed together. When a pipe is loosely engaged in a pipe hanger, vibrations in the pipe caused by pressure variation and temperature differentials create vexatious noise which generally is amplified and can be heard throughout the structure in which the pipe is housed. However, in the prior art, the more loosely the pipe is engaged, the more quickly and easily the job of installation can be accomplished. This is advantageous to the installer, but is not so for the user of the premises, who must bear the noise created by such installations. Kirk et al, U.S. Pat. No. 2,641,428 discloses an apparatus which endeavors to reduce noise by providing elastomeric discs on which the pipe may reside, however shifts, such as setting of the structure, often defeat the insulating quality of the arrangement by moving the pipe into contact with the noise transmissive parts of the hanger assembly. Other arrangements, found in U.S. Pat. Nos: 2,681,197; 4,941,630; 3,266,761; 2,291,148 have employed belts and elastomeric ring structures. Some of these retain the pipe more tightly than others and some provide better damping of vibrations, however all of them require prepositioning of the pipe within the holders before nailing of the two nail system into the support. Subsequent adjustability is not provided.
Two patents known to the inventor hereof, utilize a single pin or nail for attachment to the support structure with a view to subsequently engaging the pipe with the hanger. These also provide tightly fitting engagement with the pipe to help dampen vibrations. These do not however provide for any adjustability of distance between the pipe and support either before or after installation. Therefore it can be concluded that where the pipe would naturally be further away from the support than the particular hanger, either the pipe would be bent or the hanger could not be utilized. This is a significant drawback since it requires that the installer carry a plurality of different pipe hangers or that the installer bend the pipe to fit; a situation clearly not preferred. It is further noted that with all of the above described devices, engagement of the pipe can be difficult. Traditionally, the tighter the engagement arrangement, the more difficult it is to complete.
More recently, with the introduction of ratcheting clamps, tight engagement of pipes has become a much more simple operation, not to mention more reliable as well. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,913,187; 3,925,851; 4,183,120; 4,840,345 and 5,024,405 all disclose ratcheting clamps for a variety of applications, including clamping pipes. The ratcheting clamps are easily snapped around an object to be retained in some way and then are pressed so that oppositely facing teeth on either engagement member will engage one another. U.S. Pat. No. 5,024,405 teaches one to employ a ratcheting clamp in conjunction with an engagement plate on a horizontally disposed support member which is itself supported between two adjacent studs. The support member includes holes into which the engagement plate interconnects for lateral adjustability. A significant drawback of the system is that in order to adjust the lateral position of a pipe so engaged requires the complete disassembly of the system.
A further drawback of all of the describe systems is that none provide for swivelability. This can make some installations difficult, which, of course, translates to costly.